Update On B-52 Near Miss At North Dakota State Fair
Poor communication could have been a factor that nearly caused a mid-air collision in Minot last Friday.
Air traffic controllers at Minot International Airport, who are private contractors and not with the FAA, didn’t inform an Air Force bomber’s crew that a commercial airliner was flying in the same area.
Minot Air Force Base officials say that flight plans were followed for a B-52 conducting a flyover at the North Dakota State Fair in Minot that was approved in consultation with the Federal Aviation Administration, the Minot International Airport air traffic control, and the Minot Air Force Base’s air traffic control team.
According to reports, the SkyWest flight's pilot made an aggressive maneuver to avoid the incident, resulting in no injuries.
Passenger video posted to social media captured audio of the SkyWest pilot explaining over the plane’s intercom that the pilot made the hard bank after spotting the bomber in the flight path that Minot air traffic control had directed him to take for landing.
The FAA has not released a final report as the investigation continues.
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